John F. Kennedy photo

White House Announcement of Agreement To Link Washington and Moscow by Direct Telecommunications Facilities.

June 20, 1963

TODAY (in Geneva) the representatives of the Governments of the United States and the U.S.S.R. at the Eighteen Nation Disarmament Conference signed an agreement which will establish a direct communications link between their respective capitals. This age of fast-moving events requires quick, dependable communications for use in time of emergency. By their signatures today therefore both Governments have taken a first step to help reduce the risk of war occurring by accident or miscalculation.

This agreement on a communications link is a limited but practical step forward in arms control and disarmament. We hope agreement on other more encompassing measures will follow. We shall bend every effort to go on from this first step.

Note: The text of the agreement is published in the Department of State Bulletin (vol. 49, P. 50).

John F. Kennedy, White House Announcement of Agreement To Link Washington and Moscow by Direct Telecommunications Facilities. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/236725

Simple Search of Our Archives